Rare Paris porcelain plate, 10 and five-eighths inches in diameter; The Nast factory, circa 1806. Undecorated center, the orange-ground rim painted in black and thick white enamel with a neoclassical border of nine floral and foliate medallions alternating with fern and scroll devices between gilt bands, NAST 1/2 Paris mark on reverse in iron-red.

When the British burned the President’s House during the Madison administration, the President and Mrs. Madison resided in the Octagon House. Although unable to salvage china from the President's House they had sufficient china from their home in Virginia. This very china was used on state occasions.

Susan G.Detweiler in American Presidential China, pp 17 and 18 provides a full account of this china where a plate identical to this is illustrated. Another identical piece is illustrated in Margaret Klapthor's Official White House China, p.35.

According to Mrs. Detweiler in her book, page 18, "the few pieces of indisputable Madison china surviving today came for the most part through descendants to a sale in Philadelphia in 1899 [of the estate of Dolley P. Madison, the catalogue having been compiled by Stan V.Henkels], the others having probably been sold to pay debts incurred by Dolley's son, Payne Todd.

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